LUCY (2014) - Movie Review

Director: Luc Besson
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Choi Min-sik, Amr Waked
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Writer: Luc Besson
Runtime: 89 min
Rated: R for strong violence, disturbing images, and sexuality
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Synopsis:

From the visionary director of La Femme Nikita and The Professional and starring Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman comes an action-thriller about a woman accidentally caught in a dark deal who turns the tables on her captors. Altered by a dangerous new drug allowing her to use 100% of her brain capacity, Lucy transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic.

Review:

Strong female action heroes are a recurring theme in Luc Besson's films. Two such examples immediately come to mind: Anne Parillaud in "La Femme Nikita" and Milla Jovovich in "The Fifth Element". In 2014, Scarlett Johansson joined the ranks of Besson's badass heroines with the pseudo-intellectual sci-fi actioner "Lucy", a movie that is as dumb as it is entertaining.

Johansson stars as Lucy, a young American who unwittingly gets caught up in a mysterious drug deal and ends up ingesting an experimental chemical substance that unlocks a larger percentage of cerebral capacity than humans normally use, which in turn gives her superhuman abilities. As that percentage continues to grow, she not only becomes a remorseless killing machine, but also starts to perceive the world in new ways that may uncover the mysteries of life and the universe.

Besson's focus on the myth of what would happen if humans could use more than just one tenth of their brains is an interesting angle for an action film. It's like a cross between "The Matrix" and the 1996 John Travolta movie "Phenomenon". While the concept feels more like fantasy than science fiction, it's fascinating to watch Lucy's transformation from victim to a god-like being with omniscient powers. Johansson's performance is of crucial importance and she puts everything she has into the role. It's a tremeandously challenging part, but her performance is easily the best thing about this movie.

The film's mix of cerebral sci-fi and old fashioned shoot-'em-up mostly works, but the writing can sometimes get in the way, especially as the plot constantly slows down so that the movie can wax philosophical. And it's pretty shallow at that, its mind-blowing revelations no more than pretentious, illogical and scientifically flawed nonsense. But no matter its shortcomings or failed ambitions, "Lucy" is a solid action thriller, and while I'm not sure it ranks among Besson's best works, it still delivers a furiously entertaining 80-minute thrill ride.

SCORE: 7/10